Fabrics & materials

Metal or plastic fittings such as D-rings, swivel clips, rivets, and sliders used to attach straps, close flaps, and reinforce stress points on bags.

A sewing machine needle with a rounded tip designed to slide between the loops of knit fabric rather than piercing and breaking the yarns.

A regenerated cellulose fibre processed from bamboo pulp, marketed for softness and breathability though chemically similar to viscose rayon.

Fine, lightweight, closely woven fabric, softer and slightly more opaque than voile, traditionally cotton or linen, used for blouses, baby clothes, and heirloom sewing.

Layer of loose fibre wadding, made from cotton, wool, polyester, or blends, used as the insulating middle layer of a quilt sandwich or a padded garment.

A trademarked lightweight cupro rayon lining fabric prized for a silk-like hand, breathability and antistatic properties compared with polyester linings.

The diagonal direction across a woven fabric, at 45 degrees to the grainlines, along which fabric has maximum stretch and drape; used for bindings and fluid-cut garments.

A narrow strip of fabric cut on the bias and folded to encase a raw edge, allowing it to curve smoothly around necklines, armholes and hems.

Hand-printing technique in which a carved wooden or linoleum block is inked or dyed and pressed onto fabric to transfer a repeating design.

Dampening or steaming a piece, especially a knit, and pinning it to dry in a set shape and dimension to correct distortion before or after construction.

A knitted or woven wool fabric that has been felted through heat, moisture and agitation, producing a dense, non-fraying fabric that needs no seam finishing.

Rigid or semi-rigid strips, of steel, plastic or historically whalebone, inserted into channels to shape and support structured garments such as corsets and strapless bodices.

A tightly woven, plain-weave cotton or cotton-blend fabric similar to poplin but slightly heavier, with a subtle sheen from a calendering finish.

A very stiff, heavily sized woven or non-woven fabric used to add rigid structure, notably in hat brims, belts and structured bag panels.

A disc or shaped fastener sewn to one side of an opening and passed through a buttonhole or loop on the other side to close a garment.

A reinforced slit or bound opening in fabric sized to admit a button, finished by machine zigzag stitching, a bound technique, or hand stitching.